In Super Bowl XXXIII, quarterback John Elway famously led the Denver Broncos to victory over the Atlanta Falcons with an MVP-caliber performance. Elway is now the executive vice president of football operations in Denver, and both teams once again have championship aspirations after making the playoffs in 2011. The winning team on Monday night takes a big step toward proving it has the chops to reach the promised land.

1) It's all about pressure

Both teams managed to get to the opposing quarterback regularly in their respective season openers. Atlanta sacked Matt Cassel three times while routing the Kansas City Chiefs, and Denver somehow brought down Ben Roethlisberger five times in a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Neither Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning nor Falcons signal-caller Matt Ryan is exactly known for being athletic. However, Ryan was sacked just 26 times in 2011 (only the 26th-highest total among qualified passers), and Manning has a legendary ability to avoid pressure by moving within the pocket (he was sacked just 16 times in 2010, his last healthy season). Denver's dynamic pass-rushing duo of Von Miller (who sacked Big Ben twice in Week 1) and Elvis Dumervil must get to Ryan to help the Broncos' secondary (see below) keep Atlanta's big-play tally to a minimum. The Falcons, meanwhile, need defensive end John Abraham, his linemates and their blitzing linebackers to at least make Manning throw more quickly than he wants to; the veteran has already proven he's healthy enough to lead the Broncos' attack with deadly efficiency.

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Prediction

Manning won his last game in Atlanta, leading the Colts to a 31-13 victory in 2007, but that was a lifetime ago in NFL terms -- and the Falcons' quarterback on that day was Joey Harrington. The Ryan Express and tough running back Michael Turner will present a much more difficult challenge for the future Hall of Famer in his return to the Georgia Dome. I suspect Manning and Denver's solid defense will keep things interesting, but the Falcons will pull out a hard-fought -- and highly entertaining -- home victory.